When traveling, a gal has got to eat! In 2015, I had several trips to Delhi. Normally I keep it a quick ‘grab and go’ kinda meal unless it is a sit down business lunch or dinner.

However during my December trip, with the chill in the air and a little time on my hands between meetings I had a ‘proper’ sit down Punjabi lunch with chole (chickpeas), laccha parantha, pickles and salad. It was simple and completely satisfying!

Punjabi lunch

Now I’ve ordered hot chole bhatura from a local dhaba in Bandra and have even been known to make it at home from time to time… however it is just not the same as the spicy tangy incredibly delicious version most joints make in Delhi.

There are lots of other amazing Punjabi dishes… any other favourites out there? Ones that are simply not quite the same outside of either someone’s home or a particular location?

Share this:

Like this:

Once upon a time I flirted with becoming an academic. Perhaps a serious affair is a better way to describe it… but after a decade I had commitment issues.

Sure I loved teaching, I could even handle the hours of meticulously marking papers, gobbling up thick heavy tomes? No problem! Regurgitating papers and essays? Well… I would start by procrastinating then spew out content – sometimes with passion and sometimes merely intellectual curiosity.

You need to understand, the University of Manitoba (U of M) environment was where I grew up. I was a professor’s brat which meant the University was where I went to nursery school, where I learned to swim, where we went each summer to Mini University for ‘camp’, where I used to hop a bus from school to attend piano lessons… in short it was always home.

Share this:

Like this:

It is hard not to be a bit of a foodie in India – there is such amazing choice and range of flavours, cooking styles and combinations.

The passion and pride folks have in ‘their‘ cuisine is unmistakable!

The danger of hanging out with true foodies is that as you are enjoying one meal, plans are afoot for the next!

No surprise then that a brunch of Karwari cuisine was born out of conversations at an earlier meal.

For those not familiar with the region or its cuisines, ‘Karwar‘ is a coastal area in Karnataka, just south from Goa. A distinctive element is that though predominantly Hindu, even brahmins eat seafood and meat.

Linguistically, most speak Konkani like Goans though the official language is Kannada yet there are also strong Marathi and Hindi influences too.

As you would expect from coastal cuisine, seafood is king! Also you won’t find wheat rotis here. Instead rice is the staple starch. Plus generous reliance on coconut (including the oil for cooking) and spicy masalas.

Share this:

Like this:

Are these a new art installation? Some fancy creative contraption? Preparing for the space age piping?

All around our building these shiny new objects attached themselves to our pipes…

For those not familiar with life in Mumbai, you may be forgiven for your confusion.

After all, their purpose may simply not be required in your parts.

However for us? Let’s just say there was more than one reason we decided to welcome a kitten into our home. It was also in hopes that she would be a good mouse (or rat… or bandicoot) catcher!

Particularly since all the construction, let’s just say that the rodents of the neighbourhood have become rather adept at scurrying up our pipes. Those of us on the lower floors in particular are prone as they climb up and then hop through windows into homes full of all sorts of goodies.

But since these suckers came up? Not one rodent. Phew! Simple yet effective.

Any other unique ways of keeping rodents and other pesky creatures at bay in your home?

Advertisements

Share this:

Like this:

As I enjoy a lazy Saturday in Mumbai with our kitten Zoe while my partner is busy on a chilly shoot in Manali, Himachal Pradesh, I was reminded of cooler climes during an autumn trip to Amsterdam (Nov 2014)… with a few non-human friends who tried to brighten and warm up our days!

More than just a cosy home, the OosterparkAirBnB flat came replete with bright fall coloured garden and puuuurrrfectly friendly felines.